council-manager
City governance structure
Council-manager describes a form of municipal government in which an elected city council sets policy while a hired professional manager handles day-to-day administration.
The council-manager system separates political leadership from operational management, with the manager serving at the council's pleasure rather than facing election.
Most mid-sized American cities operate under a council-manager government.
This structure emerged in the early twentieth century as part of Progressive Era reforms aimed at reducing political corruption.
Of city government
- local governmentRegional civic administration
- administratorPerson who manages operations
- elected officialsLeaders chosen by vote
- policyAdopted principle of action
ordinance · public administration · charter · commission · alderman · mayor · executive · legislative
US social reform period
- efficiencyProductive without waste
- professionalizationEstablishing occupational standards formally
- anti-corruptionOpposing abuse of office
- merit-basedAwarded by achievement
Staunton · Dayton · modernization · depoliticization · expertise · technocratic · accountability · transparency
Constitutional distribution of authority
- boardFlat rigid panel
- at-largeFree and uncaptured
- wardsProtected dependents or districts
- districtsDefined administrative regions
tenure · hierarchy · department heads · chain of command · delegation · centralized · decentralized · reporting
municipal
Of city government
- local governmentRegional civic administration
- administratorPerson who manages operations
- elected officialsLeaders chosen by vote
policy · ordinance · public administration · charter · commission · alderman · mayor · executive · legislative · town
Progressive Era
US social reform period
- efficiencyProductive without waste
- professionalizationEstablishing occupational standards formally
- anti-corruptionOpposing abuse of office
merit-based · Staunton · Dayton · modernization · depoliticization · expertise · technocratic · accountability · transparency · citizen engagement
separation of powers
Constitutional distribution of authority
districts · tenure · hierarchy · department heads · chain of command · delegation · centralized · decentralized · reporting · authority
council-managermayor-council
Urban governance arrangement
town meeting · direct democracy · city commission · county executive
council, manager, councils, councillor, councillors, councilor, councilors, manage, manages